AURORA JAMES

Fifteen Percent Pledge

Black-owned businesses really are the heart of the Black community. In May 2020, they were hemorrhaging—there was data that showed 40 percent of Black-owned businesses were projected to close as a result of the pandemic, and 90 percent didn’t get access to the first round of PPP money. On top of conversations about what was needed to stop what happened to Mr. Floyd from happening again, I wanted to make people cognizant of Black communities from a financial perspective.

To engage major corporations to make meaningful, long-term change in the Black community, I created the Fifteen Percent Pledge, and asked major retailers like Whole Foods, Target, and Sephora to commit to buying 15 percent of their products from Black-owned businesses. It would be good business for everyone, and it would incentivize people to keep doing this work long after the moment had passed.

That summer, I spoke with major retailers across the country. A lot of them were interested in publicizing statements, but not in signing long-term contracts. Since then, 29 companies have signed the Pledge, and we’ve created the potential to shift billions of dollars to more than 600 Black-owned businesses.

Looking ahead, I’m thinking of how we take what we’ve started and get across the finish line. I would love to see Walmart, Target, and Kroger step up. I also want to see financial institutions step up, because getting on shelves is about more than having retail space—it’s also about access to capital. My hope is to age the Pledge out of relevance, to where it’s par for the course that everyone has at least 15 percent of their shelves dedicated to Black-owned businesses.

As well as being the founder of the New York City-based nonprofit Fifteen Percent Pledge, Aurora James is the award-winning founder and creative director of the fashion brand Brother Vellies.